Best & Worst Video Games and Movies of 2012
Borderlands 2
I've spent 100+ hours on this game and its DLC and the game never gets old or tiring to me. I always have a good time playing it and that's why it's my number one pick of 2012. The main games story really was not as good at the first game but I don't play Borderlands for its story, I play for the funny characters you meet, the millions of guns that are in the game and the rare loot. There are a lot of side missions to do which even I have not completed but plan to someday.
Halo 4
I really felt for Master Chief and his AI partner Cortana in this game. I won't give too much of the story away but for once I really cared about the characters. The game play is like, well its Halo. You have the standard Halo weapons at your disposal until midway through the game when you meet the new enemies of the series and their guns. Multiplayer is a blast with a lot of playlists and game types to choose from. I am excited to see where Halo 5 will take us.
The Walking Dead
This game is my surprise of the year, I didn't think a point and click type game would work for The Walking Dead, but to my surprise it works extremely well. It features a very well written story that makes you care about some characters. At times you are given tough choices on who will survive and who won't. The game does have a few glitches, I encountered frame rate dropping during cut scenes, audio problems and freezing. Other than that make sure you have a tissue when you see the ending.
Diablo 3
Diablo 3 feels the same of Diablo 2, but much better, only thing it doesn't offer is a good story. For some reason I was able to figure out the end of the game within the first hour of the game. It did take me well over 30 hours to complete even with the help of online co-op. The game at times made me feel like I was back in High School again since Diablo 2 was the game everyone was playing back then. Click, Click, Click.
New Super Mario Bros U
The first Mario game that's in true HD. The levels are beautiful, and very colorful. Some of the levels are a bit tough and requires a lot of practice.
Skylanders: Giants
It might be the same game as last year's Skylanders, just with new levels and new characters/toys, but the game sucked me in and I really enjoyed it. I didn't rush though it as I did with last year's version. I played a level a day. My kids really enjoyed when I played it and tried to help putting the toys on the Portal Of Power.
Darksiders 2
Just like the first game Darksiders II reminds me of a Legend Of Zelda game but this one features elements of a dungeon crawler like Diablo. In this game you play as Death, but the format is the same, seek out dungeons, find items, beat bosses, only difference I noticed is your character moves a lot faster.
Lego Batman 2: DC Heroes
I am not sure if this is the first open world Lego game, but I enjoyed it. The open world provides a more challenging way to find and buy extra characters and extras like cheats. The puzzles in the game seem to be a little more difficult than the first Lego Batman. This is the first Lego game to feature full voice acting and understanding the story is a lot easier.
New Super Mario Bros 2
The sequel to the original DS game was a fun and enjoyable experience. The game is not that difficult but yet fun enough to sit on the couch and work your way to Bowser. It was also nice to play again as Raccoon Mario.
The Simpsons: The Arcade Game
Thru out the past 7 years Xbox has been slowly releasing all my favorite arcade games from when I was a kid and this year they released The Simpsons. Not only have I finally beat it, but it stayed true to the original arcade version. It took me back to when the Simpsons was the best show on TV.
Family Guy: Back To The Multiverse
I was really excited for this game, thought maybe it would score low on my top 10 best games list. If you ever saw the Family Guy episode "Road To The Multiverse" then you would think this game should be at least ok. When I first started playing it I thought this might be ok, it felt like a 3rd person Call of Duty shooter. The screen shows you where your objective is and how far away it is. The first level was ok I thought, it wasn't until the second and third level that this game sucks. Sure it has original cast members doing their voices and there are a few ha-ha moments but the game starts getting tougher and when you get surrounded by up to 10 enemies it seems whatever weapon you have is not strong enough to help. Each enemy was taking up to 3 shots just to kill them and I was dying a lot and gave up on the game. I keep trying to go back and play it but it is just no fun anymore.
Call Of Duty: Black Ops 2
I say this about every year now but I am sick of the Call Of Duty franchise, and Black Ops 2 is no different. The story is hard to understand unless you can remember every character and their outcome from a two year old game. But I did not understand who I was fighting, who I was playing as or why I was fighting half the time. Like The Walking Dead some of your choices decide the outcome of certain characters and the ending and I hope this isn't a trend that will come to all games. Certain games it works for but not all.
Kinect Star Wars
Oh, you mean I can pretend I'm holding a Lightsaber in my hand and swing it around however I want. No not really. Move your arm up and it blocks up, hold it to your left you will defend your left side swing it and you will swing, but nothing fancy like the movies. The story didn't make much sense, and they make you do strange movements just for basic things like walking forward. Oh and there is the dance party side game which is just embarrassing to talk about. Look up Han Solo Kinect Star Wars on YouTube or Darth Vader Dancing Kinect and you will see what I am talking about.
Angry Birds Trilogy
Of all devices Angry Birds is on there is no reason to pay $39 for this game. The game plays better on mobile devices anyway.
Pokémon White/Black 2
Sure there are a few new Pokémon, a few new locations and activities but other than that it's the same game Nintendo released in 2011.
The Dark Knight Rises
Its not the movie we wanted, but it's the movie we deserve. The first time I saw this movie I hated it, I found many plot holes and I said back then it could end up on my worst of 2012 list. Then I saw it a second time, knowing it wasn't going to be all Batman all the time I enjoyed it a lot more. The movie tells a really good story and ties the trilogy to a very well ending. All though it still has its flaws and plot holes The Dark Knight Rises is my 2012 movie of the year.
Ted
A cute and funny movie about a man and his real life teddy bear Ted. However don't let that statement fool you, this is not a kids movie and aimed more for adults. Ted is obsessed with smoking pot and getting laid. It's from Seth McFarlane, the creator of Family Guy and other shows, so if your familiar with his work you know what you're getting yourself into.
Dark Shadows
I love the feel and look of Tim Burton films, and this film offers both. I know nothing about the old TV series which this is based on but turns out I didn't need to know much. Johnny Depp does a good job playing as a vampire. There were a few plot holes and of course sets up for a sequel.
American Reunion
Didn't think I would like this movie that much, I thought it would just be another American Pie gag movie, which for the most part it is, but they were able to get all the original cast members from the first two films and it was neat learning how their lives have changed and how they look now.
Men In Black III
Although Tommy Lee Jones only appears for about 10 minutes then Will Smith goes back in time only to meet a younger version of Jones, the movie was still enjoyable and fun to watch. The actor who plays the younger version of Jones really nailed it. You also get to learn about both characters backgrounds and why Agent K (Jones) is such a hard ass to Agent J (Smith)
Piranha 3DD
I enjoyed the first movie. Yeah it was a cheesy horror film but I enjoyed it. So I was excited to see the sequel. However no movie theater within 75 miles of me was not showing it. I couldn't even find it when it was supposedly released on blu-ray. So this movie makes my worst movie of 2012 cause if I can't find it anywhere to buy it must be really bad.
Prometheus
I watched the movie not as an Alien movie but set in its universe. They said mysteries from Alien will be answered such as who or what was that giant creature they first found when they entered the Alien ship in original Alien movie. However Prometheus left more questions unanswered then it was suppose to answer. Story wise the movie was very boring and just would not end. I was so board. They left it open for a sequel. Also as I predicted the final scene would feature some form of the classic Alien from the Alien movies.
Amazing Spider-Man
It was an ok movie if it was a sequel and not a complete reboot of the franchise. Most of the movie features Spider-Man learning and being able to control the movie. It did have a Batman Begins feeling to it so I would like to see where they take it from here, but this movie just felt boring since it's an origin story and we already had one in the past 10 years.
The Avengers
I loved all the Avengers individual movies so how come I hate a movie that brings them all back in one film? For starters half the movie is about them not getting along and fighting with each other. The story was very poor for this super group movie. It did get better towards the end but by then I had already lost interest.
Resident Evil: Retribution
They really need to stop making sequels to this movie franchise. This is the fifth film and I feel like you have to go back and watch all the four films just to keep up with this storyline. Less than 5 minutes in this movie made my worst of list easily. Its left open for another sequel which will probably follow the same formula the previous sequels go by. I still do consider the first Resident Evil movie one of my favorite Game to Film movies.